Musket Fire
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The 10 best Patriots games of the 2010s decade: Nos. 10-7

By Brady McAlear

HOUSTON, TX - FEBRUARY 05: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime to win Super Bowl 51 at NRG Stadium on February 5, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - FEBRUARY 05: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime to win Super Bowl 51 at NRG Stadium on February 5, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – FEBRUARY 04: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots reacts after fumbling against the Philadelphia Eagles during the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – FEBRUARY 04: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots reacts after fumbling against the Philadelphia Eagles during the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

No. 10: The Philly Special

47. 41. 54. Final. 33

  • February 4th, 2018
  • Super Bowl LII
  • U.S. Bank Stadium
  • Minneapolis, Minnesota

Sure, it’s a very sore spot for Patriots fans, but despite the result, Super Bowl LII was pretty incredible. On a night where we saw one of Tom Brady’s best individual performances – racking up 505 yards through the air with three touchdowns to boot – the New England Patriots just couldn’t quite deny the Philadelphia Eagles from winning their first Super Bowl in team history.

The Eagles were a team of destiny. Despite losing second-year quarterback Carson Wentz amidst an MVP-caliber season to a torn ACL, the Nick Foles-led Eagles managed to claw their way past the Atlanta Falcons in the Divisional Round before obliterating the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship Game.

The Patriots were also dealing with the injury of a star player that season in the form of Julian Edelman, who tore his ACL in a preseason against the Detroit Lions. Fellow star wideout Brandin Cooks left this game early in the second quarter. But despite those massive blows to their receiving corps, three different Patriots – Rob Gronkowski, Danny Amendola, and Chris Hogan – each finished with over 100 yards receiving.

Even still, it wasn’t enough.

The Eagles managed to score on eight of their 10 drives in this game. Let’s just put that in perspective for a moment, shall we? According to Pro Football Reference, the Patriots themselves led the league in scoring percentage in 2017 with 49.4% of their drives resulting in points.

Philadelphia managed an 80% scoring percentage in this game, which is pretty darn good. The Patriots defense really just played that bad. Crazy to see how much the defense has changed in just two years, right?

All that being said, while frustrating for Patriots fans, this Super Bowl made for an exciting offensive shootout. A total of 74 points and 1,151 total yards were put up by these two teams, and the game even came to a tense conclusion with a last-second desperation Brady Hail Mary attempt falling incomplete… and with that, the celebration commenced in Philly.

Patriots Player of the Game: Tom Brady, 28/48 for 505 Yards, three touchdowns, and a 115.4 QBR

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